Former police official Erekle Kodua sentenced in absentia

TBILISI, DFWatch–A former government official was Thursday sentenced in absentia by Tbilisi City Court to two years in jail for exceeding official powers.

The Prosecutor General’s Office says Erekle Kodua, who chaired the Special Operative Department (SOD) of the Interior Ministry during Mikheil Saakashvili’s presidency, was found guilty of abuse of power and fraud in relation to two incidents.

The office charged Kodua on March 17, 2014. Like many former officials, he left Georgia right after the parliamentary election in October 2012. He was wanted by Interpol, but in November of 2015 the organization terminated the search for him.

Kodua was charged under articles 333 and 180 of the Criminal Code and found guilty for offending the third passage of article 333 about abusing official powers. He was sentenced to two years and eight months in jail, but due to the mass law passed on December 28, 2012, his sentence was reduced to two years. He is also prohibited from holding an official post for two years.